


teenage records

by scumfuck



Category: IT 2017
Genre: :((, First Kiss, High School, M/M, Reddie, hints at homophobia, set in early 90s i guess, tears for fears songs cause i love them they're my favorite band ever, yeah!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-08
Updated: 2018-02-08
Packaged: 2019-03-15 08:02:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,800
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13609062
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/scumfuck/pseuds/scumfuck
Summary: Richie blinked and removed his glasses, tucking them into his shirt pocket. "You're not the only one in the world who's gay," he responded. It was almost like a secret, but more of an assurance. Eddie's eyebrows furrowed."It feels like it."





	teenage records

**Author's Note:**

> just a drabble i did yesterday, nothing special

"How'd'you get your skin so clear, Eds?" Richie's nose was in his face, and his hands were squeezing his cheeks like a grandmother does her grandchildren. Eddie wanted to die, because his cheeks were going to start heating up soon, and Richie would feel them.

  
"I don't let grimy fingers touch it," Eddie retaliated, smacking at the other boy's hands. "Get off me, will you?"

  
Richie laughed and knocked it off, turning and walking swiftly to the lunch line. He bought lunch every day, with a little "allowance" he got from his father. Eddie knew it wasn't a lot of money to begin with, so he never asked about it. Eddie didn't like looking at the shit schools gave kids for lunch. One time, Richie asked the lunch lady why they always had weird meat every day after another, and she stared at him with the dirtiest look Eddie's ever seen from a lunch lady, and told him something about how he needed to just 'eat it and shut up.'  
Eddie brought his lunch to school, every day. Even in high school, senior year, when everyone was allowed to leave for the lunch period if they wanted to.

  
"Eddie! How are you, babe?" Beverly said as Eddie settled at their table. He smiled back at her, so enthusiastic to see him.

  
"I'm okay," Eddie replied, and his eyes hovered over the lunch line, where Richie was taking way too long to pick out a type of milk when Eddie knew for a fact he was only allowed 2%.

  
Mike tugged on the sleeve of his sweatshirt. "Eddie, we were just talking about prom. You going?"

  
Eddie looked up at Mike, who wore a gentle smile on his face. Eddie would have swooned if he wasn't thinking correctly. "Oh- I don't know yet."

  
Beverly groaned, but smiled. Her teeth on the bottom row were kind of yellow, he noticed. "Eddie, you've been saying that since freshman year!" she whined. "When are you going to come to a decision?"

  
Eddie shrugged and pulled out his sandwich. As he was taking a bite of it, Richie slumped into the seat across from him, slapping the lunch tray on the table. Eddie would have grimaced at the plate, filled with mac and cheese that looked like cardboard with mustard drizzled over it. Next to it was a sad looking piece of taylor ham. He was sure it was cold. Or raw.

  
"What are we talking about, lads?" The boy looked expectantly at the lunch table, who gave him knowing looks pointedly towards Eddie.

  
Mike tried to step in. "Tryna see what Eddie's opinion on prom is," he stated.

  
"Again," Stan muttered.

  
Richie grinned. "Hey, if you don't have a date, I'll take you!" Beverly choked on her water and laughed too loudly for Eddie to believe his statement wasn't a joke. His stomach bunched up in a tight knot.

  
"O-or, w-we can all duh-ditch prom..." Bill looked down at his own sandwich and shrugged.

  
"Why would we do that?" Richie threw his hands in the air, as if it was obvious that they all wanted to go.

  
Bill made and "I dunno" sound under his breath. Eddie looked down to his lap and fiddled with his fingers.

  
"Hey, look," Richie snapped his fingers in front of Eddie's face, "I'll buy you a prom ticket. All you gotta do is rent a suit, and have fun. Promise me you'll do that?"

  
Eddie stared at his wide eyes for a moment before nodding, sealing their deal. It was generous of Richie to offer such an expensive thing. Not that Richie's family was poor, or anything, but he didn't get a lot of money on his own. Eddie didn't really know. He knew, but he didn't know.

  
Mike rubbed a hand on his shoulder, and Eddie smiled at the warmth of it. "You'll have fun. We'll be by your side the whole night, we promise."

  
Eddie looked up and everyone nodded their heads.

  
Eddie smiled back at them and mumbled a thanks under his breath, and felt Richie's boot kicking his seat underneath the table.

* * *

  
It was the night of prom and Eddie was standing by himself against a wall. He watched Richie and Beverly do some kind of swing dance to some poppy song, and craved to be in Beverly's place. That's all he ever wanted, was to do that and not get laughed at.

  
He kept drinking from the punch, which was probably either spiked or infested with diseases, but he couldn't care less. He couldn't help but not care about anything. It was prom night, and he was he only one in the goddamn room without a dance. Even the AV kids had dances, and that was saying something.  
Eddie listened to the songs change and the DJ screaming obnoxiously into the microphone. He wanted to go home.  
All of his friends were on that floor dancing with each other, with other girls, with everyone they pleased, and Eddie was being a loser, and a party pooper, and not doing any of those things. It was a waste of fifty bucks for a ticket. Absolute waste.

  
He found himself gripping the solo cup when Head Over Heels came on. He raked the crowd for Richie, wondering if he remembered his favorite song in the world, but Richie was too busy grabbing some random girl and twisting her to the opening music.

  
Eddie felt tears sting at his eyes. Fuck. Fuck that. He threw out the cup, not caring if there was any punch left in it. Then he glanced over and saw Beverly and Ben slow dancing and looking like the only people in the world were each other, and he felt a tear fall down his cheek.

  
He passed by chaperones who paid no mind to him and pushed open the doors, leading himself out to the cool almost-summer air. It felt at least 90 percent less humid outside, and he breathed in the scent of freshly mowed grass. The sun was setting in the sky, a purple color falling over him as he seated himself on the corner.

  
He wiped at his face with the corner of his sleeves, of the wasted fucking tux he shouldn't have even rented.

  
The song was still audible outside, and listening to it made Eddie feel like he was crumpled and thrown away like a used piece of notebook paper.

  
He rubbed at his eyes and stared at a blade of grass next to the sidewalk. The song ended and another pop song blasted through the speakers. It was really loud, and Eddie couldn't tell what song it was because it was muffled.  
He kicked a rock on the ground. He whispered to himself, "You'll have fun, they said. No one danced with you, though."

  
"You coulda danced with me, y'know." Eddie jumped and placed his hand over his heart. When his eyes caught Richie's, he wanted to shrivel up.

  
Eddie didn't know what to say. "I was scared."

  
Richie sat down beside him on the curb, staring ahead. Across the street was the Jewish temple, which Eddie hadn't noticed until that moment.

  
"I'm sorry," Eddie said, and he meant it.

  
"I know..." Richie wiped a sweaty curl behind his ear.

  
Eddie sucked in his stomach, but he didn't know why. Richie picked a weed out of the ground and twisted it with his fingers.

  
"You hear they played Tears for Fears?" Eddie voiced in a whisper. He saw Richie smile in his peripheral vision, and his heart fluttered.

  
"That was our favorite band when we were little," Richie reminisced, and laid fully down on his back on the sidewalk. Eddie hesitated for a moment, before doing the same. Richie's face was turned to him. "'Member when MTV played their music videos? 'N we'd pretend we were the girl and the boy?"

  
Eddie nodded and his neck was hot at their close proximity. Richie closed his fingers over his stomach and laughed at the memory.

  
"I miss that," Eddie murmured. Richie hummed in agreement. "I miss living like that."

  
"Like what?"

  
Eddie bit on his lip. "I miss being able to do that. Without feeling guilty, or whatever."

  
Richie's breath was slow, and Eddie could hear it. "You shouldn't feel guilty for anything... Or anyone."

  
"I know, but-"

  
"You know, but you can't help it," Richie nodded, as if he'd heard it before.

  
"I have too many feelings," Eddie confided. His heart rate was kicking up and he felt a little sick. Richie opened his mouth but said nothing, so Eddie continued. "Feelings towards everyone who comes near me. I guess that's why no one talked to me in there." 

Neither said anything for a moment. When Eddie turned his head again, Richie's face was screwed up and he was staring at the sky. Eddie took an audible breath and stared up at the sky, too. Then he spoke, breaking their silence.

"Sometimes, I feel like it's always going to be this way," he whispered. "I'm going to catch myself watching other people fall in love. Be the last one to have a wedding, if at all." 

Richie blinked and removed his glasses, tucking them into his shirt pocket. "You're not the only one in the world who's gay," he responded. It was almost like a secret, but more of an assurance. Eddie's eyebrows furrowed. 

"It feels like it." 

Richie suddenly sat up. Eddie didn't move- he didn't have the energy to. He let Richie stare down at him and willed him to just go back, just have fun and be a kid for the last time. "I'm sorry," Eddie mumbled. 

He closed his eyes, letting a tear escape. It went completely silent, the only sound from his own breathing, and he was sure Richie had stood and left when he felt a warm press on his lips and a heavy hand on his jaw. His own hand shot up to curl around it, and he leant up into the kiss. It was soft and subtle and beautiful, and Eddie melted right into the pavement. 

The sound of the venue's doors tore them apart, leaving Eddie breathless and scared and a little excited and Richie smiling. 

"You're not the only one, Eddie." 

Eddie bit his lip and breathed through his nose. He met Richie's bare eyes and asked, timidly, "Do you wanna dance?" 

Richie shook his head. "Fuck no. I wanna spend time with you," he laughed and reached over to ruffle Eddie's hair. Then he stood up, and pulled the boy with him, linking their arms. 

They swayed as they skipped to Richie's truck. "I still have that one mixtape somewhere in this old thing- the one with Tears for Fears? Our favorite teenage records." 

 

 


End file.
